A Lot of Sequins (A McRoll in the REAL World Story)
by ilna
Summary: A visit to Angie's gymnastics class leads to two special gifts.


**Notes:** Huge, huge thank you to Mari and Sammy for stepping in and helping out when I needed it most. You two really are the best. Above and beyond!

Readers and REAL McRollers - Thank you for all your amazing support! It is always appreciated.

Titles comes from a line in _Lunch with the Captain_ by Ilna.

**Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

_A Lot of Sequins (A McRoll in the REAL Story by Ilna, Mari, and Sammy)_

"Good job, Angie!" Joseph called out across the gym. He looked at Elizabeth beside him and said, "She's improving on that. She held that position at least three seconds."

Elizabeth flashed him a smile before turning to back to watch Angie make a V with her body on the floor. She held her arms and legs up for a few seconds then toppled to the side but promptly pushed herself back up with a giggle to try again.

They'd watched her on the beam and bars already, as well as the trampoline. The last activity of the day was tumbling.

As the small group of two- to three-year-olds were led toward the slanted mat for some rolls and somersaults, Elise, another grandparent whose granddaughter was in the class said, "Is that a new leotard? I don't remember seeing that one on Angie before."

Elizabeth smiled. "Yes, she picked it out herself. We were a little surprised she went for one with so many sequins."

"But she does seem to have settled on purple as her favorite color," Joseph added. "At least for now."

Elise returned their smiles before her attention went back to her granddaughter who was up first on the mat.

Joseph leaned toward his wife. "I know Angie's younger, but being here reminds me of watching Catherine figure skating," Joseph said.

Elizabeth smiled. "Little warmer than the ice rink, though."

He chuckled. "True."

She nudged him. "Must be the sequins."

"The sequins," he admitted before nodding to Angie who had taken her place at the top of the mat, "and also that look of determination."

They watched as Angie executed two somersaults in a row down the incline and stood at the bottom to raise both arms in the air with a triumphant "Ta-da!"

A beaming Elizabeth was able to capture the moment on her phone.

"Determination … and joy," Joseph added, smiling broadly at his granddaughter so clearly in her element.

Elizabeth smiled, agreeing wholeheartedly. She viewed the photo she'd just taken. "Oh, that's a keeper."

Joseph glanced over her shoulder and smiled. "It sure is," he said.

* * *

A few days later, Elizabeth returned to the condo after running a few errands and found her husband putting away laundry in their bedroom..

He smiled up at her as she stepped into the room, Smokey at her heels. "Success?" he asked, closing the dresser drawer.

"And then some," she said, reaching into her purse and pulling out an envelope.

"CVS?" he asked, noticing the logo. "I don't remember that being on your list."

She just smiled enigmatically, handing over the envelope. "This one wasn't on the official list."

He took it, opening the flap and pulling out a small, wallet-sized photograph. A smile spread across his face as he recognized it as the one Elizabeth had taken of Angie at gymnastics earlier in the week.

"Well, I've got just the place for that," he said, reaching for his wallet on top of the dresser and opening it to the photo insert he'd had for years.

She smiled. "I thought you might." She watched as he flipped a few of the pictures until he reached the one he was looking for. It was a photo of a determined, smiling Catherine on skates in a sparkly leotard performing an upright spin at age nine.

His face grew wistful as he looked at the picture of his daughter, and his eyes moved to the photo opposite, another one of Catherine figure skating. Elizabeth watched him hesitate, clearly wanting to add the photo of Angie, but not wanting to cover up either of the other pictures. He flipped through the other pages, photos of Elizabeth, Catherine, Angie, and now DJ in their spaces. She easily read the conflict on his face and smiled softly.

"Then again …" she said, pulling another item from her purse, "maybe you don't."

He looked up and saw she'd produced a new photo insert. As he took it, he smiled to realize it was a little thicker than his current one so must have more photo slots.

"You really do think of everything, you know that?" he said, leaning over to kiss her.

She smiled in response and set her purse on the dresser, joining him on the bed where he'd sat to begin transferring his photos from the old insert to the new.

They shared soft murmurings at the memories the images evoked. A photo of the two of them on their wedding day opposite one of Catherine and Steve on theirs. Catherine as a baby and a picture of Angie a few days after she was born. Smokey when they first adopted him. A recent photo of DJ from their New Jersey trip.

Once all the photos had been transferred, Joseph leaned over to throw the old insert into the trash can but stopped himself. He tapped it against his leg thoughtfully.

"What are you going to do with that one?" Elizabeth asked.

He smiled. "I know someone who'll appreciate it just as much as I have."

* * *

Joseph stopped by the beach house the following night while Elizabeth and Ang were taking a watercolor class at a small, local art gallery. "I won't stay long," he said as he made his way into the living room. "I just wanted to drop something off." He took note of the quiet in the house. "Where are DJ and Angie?"

"Esther took them to the pet parade down at the beach," Steve replied.

"Those things are trouble." Joseph shook his head and chuckled. "The condo association sponsored one a few weeks back and the local shelter brought over a dozen or so animals available for adoption. We came this close..." he held his thumb and forefinger up with just a tiny amount of space in between, "to having another dog."

Catherine snorted. She'd heard from both her mother and her grandmother about the adorable labrador in the parade that needed a home. Luckily for her father a new family had just moved in the floor above who had two young children and who were very eager to find a dog to become part of their family. When the kids hit it off with the lab right away both Elizabeth and Ang knew he'd found his new home. "I gave Esther strict instructions that she left here with two breathing beings and she is to return here with two breathing beings. No more."

"Good luck with that," Joseph said. "I've seen Angie and DJ with Gizmo. I predict there's a cat in your future at some point."

"We'll see," Catherine scoffed.

"In the meantime…" Joseph handed Steve a small box. "I brought you something."

Steve looked slightly confused. "What's the occasion?"

"No occasion. Just one father to another."

Steve opened the box and found a wallet sized picture of Angie in her sequined purple leotard along with a photo insert for a wallet.

Joseph smiled softly. "I know we're all high-tech now with photos on our phone, but there's something about having a picture in your wallet."

"I remember the first time I saw the pictures in your wallet," Steve said.

Catherine groaned. "The infamous lunch."

He grinned at her. "A lot of sequins." He looked back at his father-in-law. "This is great, Joseph," Steve said, clearly touched by the gesture. "Thank you."

"When Catherine was young I got to see plenty of her practices and competitions but I missed a lot of them too. That picture I carry of her with all the sequins was taken by Grandma Ang while I was deployed." He smiled at his daughter then his eyes moved back to Steve who was running his finger reverently over Angie's picture. "Whether you're across the world or across town I know what it feels like to never want to miss a moment of your child's life. I always found that having a picture of what she'd been up to with me at all times helped with that."

Steve slid the picture into the first slot then pulled out his wallet.

"That served me well for a long time but I think it still has some good years left in it," Joseph said.

Steve's eyes lit up. "Wait, is this yours?"

Joseph nodded. "Elizabeth bought me a new one because I was running out of space so I wanted you to have this one."

"Thank you." Steve's voice was soft. "That means a lot."

"We can choose some other pictures from the wall to have made into wallet sized prints," Catherine offered. "You have quite a few more slots to fill." Her smile turned soft as she placed a hand on Steve's back before stepping up to Joseph. "That," she glanced at her husband who was already adding the insert to his wallet, "was incredibly sweet." She kissed her dad's cheek and moved back to Steve's side to admire the photo of their determined, never say die, daughter.

She leaned into his side when his arm slipped around her. "That's perfect," she said.

"_She's_ perfect." Steve echoed the words he told Danny upon introducing him to Angie. He shook his head slightly. "Never thought..."

"Never thought that when Dad was showing you my picture at lunch all those years ago, you'd be carrying that same insert someday? Filled with a picture of our own little girl?"

He looked between the wallet in his hand and his smiling father-in-law and the two men didn't need words. Kissing Catherine's temple, he grinned.

"Something like that. Something exactly like that."

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**Hope you enjoyed!**

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